The present invention relates to a coffee machine having a dispenser provided with independent heating and to a method for preparing coffee in accordance with said machine.
Coffee (the beverage) has always been very widespread and popular; in fact, nowadays it is available in a number of varieties which differ from each other both in terms of the starting mixture and in terms of the means of extraction (temperature and time of extraction, quantity of water used, etc.).
The automated preparation of coffee has been the subject of a number of developments, substantially directed towards ensuring that water could always be available, at the desired time, at the ideal temperature, at the required pressure and in the necessary quantities.
Among the most recent developments, it is certainly possible to include the machine described in patent application EP1074210. That machine comprises a dispenser which is connected to the boiler by way of a means for controlling the thermosiphon circulation and can be controlled both so as to dispense coffee of the Mediterranean type (obtained with from 15 to 25 ml of water at approximately 98° C. which passes through the mixture of ground coffee for approximately 30 seconds), and so as to dispense café crème (obtained from light blends, in which from 100 to 120 ml of water at approximately 90° C. are caused to flow in approximately 20 seconds through the ground coffee) which is more widespread in northern Europe.
Changing over from one control type to the other, however, requires long and complex operations to be carried out for calibrating the control valve which, precisely owing to the length thereof, cannot be carried out during daily use of the machine in a bar or in another public place.
Currently, machines possess an ever greater number of functions and an ever increasing proportion of those is electronically controlled, affording the operators the possibility of using ad hoc programmes for an ever increasing number of different services and/or beverages.
The increasing availability around the world of espresso coffee has led to an increase in the demand for variety and quality of the beverages.